


Our Little Hellspawn

by Zakani_Donovan



Series: Well, That Was A Thing (Good Omens One-Shots) [3]
Category: Good Omens (TV), Good Omens - Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett
Genre: Afterlife, Armageddon, Aziraphale and Crowley are Adam Young's Parents (Good Omens), Crowley raises the Antichrist, Fluff, Gay, Light Angst, Living Together, Love Confessions, M/M, good omens - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-26
Updated: 2020-06-26
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:29:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,946
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24886858
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zakani_Donovan/pseuds/Zakani_Donovan
Summary: When Crowley can’t come to grips with the impending end of the world, he makes a rash decision, and that’s how he ends up raising the Antichrist as his own. With Aziraphale’s help, of course.
Relationships: Aziraphale & Crowley (Good Omens), Aziraphale & The Antichrist, Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens), Crowley & The Antichrist
Series: Well, That Was A Thing (Good Omens One-Shots) [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1800655
Kudos: 73





	Our Little Hellspawn

**Author's Note:**

> Context: Based on apocalemonart's "Good Aumens" AU on Instagram. AKA: Crowley keeps the baby. (I put Adam Young in the tags so you know what the boy looks like, but that’s not his name in this fic.)

Before you begin: [Note the shape their halos make.](https://www.instagram.com/p/B5RM2mmFlzl/?igshid=1qq7iworf8vfz)

  
_** Crowley's POV:**_

Crowley is terrified. He's about to do his most important task, the one he didn't know he was meant to do since the beginning of time. Before getting out the car, he peeks into the basket and the child whines, whether it's from discomfort or just his normal attitude, Crowley isn't sure. He looks at the entrance and sees a man, his brain quickly tells him to get the baby to shut up or said man might think something of it and ruin the entire thing.

He doesn't know whether he can do miracles on the Angel Of The Bottomless Pit, and frankly, he fears the thought of trying. So he just starts shushing him softly and brings down a hand into the basket to tuck him in even more. He's squirmed so much in there, the blanket's gone down to his hips. As he does this, his skin grazed The Adversary's and the child stopped whining. Momentarily anyway, he starts up again once Crowley removes his hand.

"Must want attention..." He said out loud.

He glanced over at the man again, knowing the brightness of the Bentley's headlights kept him from seeing into the vehicle, he turned back towards the basket and carefully picked up the baby. Some of the fear on the child's face seemed to melt away but he still whined.

Crowley decided to test a theory. He put two fingers on the baby's cheek. The Original Fallen Angel's son seemed to lean into the touch. The demon wondered if this was just a normal baby's instinct or if he recognized a fellow evil presence. Whatever it was, he simply decided to ignore it and get on with the task.

He decided to miracle the man at the entrance and not risk anything happening to the Antichrist thanks to his magic. Satan knows what he'd do to him. Literally, and he wasn't going to take that chance.

He entered the hospital but no nun crossed his path immediately to just get rid of the child. He sat (more like melted) in a nearby chair and brought his hands to his face. He was mentally spiraling now as he looked at the basket at his feet.

_6,000 years. 6,000 years and now it's all going to end in 11? They could've at least given me a heads-up!... Why me? Why, of all the demons in Hell, do I get stuck with this job?... I don't want all this to end..._

His mind is brought to a halt thanks to a particularly loud wail from the Antichrist. He lifts the basket's lid and is met with sad blue eyes.

_This is all your fault... Well, not technically I suppose. You didn't ask to be born. If anything, I should be angry at your father and our mother. If he didn't rebel in the first place, maybe none of this would be happening..._

But it was happening. His existence being the very proof of it. Just as Crowley's mind was about to go down another rabbit-hole of regret and fear, he felt a tug at his hand. He looked down to see that The Prince Of Darkness has wrapped his tiny, little hand around his index finger. He met the child's eyes and saw relief in them. This perplexed him. He seemed like a completely normal baby boy, you couldn't truly sense his evil presence or see anything abnormal about him. That's when he realized something, something that could either solve his current predicament, or make things much worse.

Sister Mary walked into view and his mind jumped towards the task once again. He called her and handed over the child for them to make the switch. He walked out but found himself stopping once the man spoke to him.

"Lovely car, sir."

"Yeah, she's a beaut."

"Always wanted one myself. 'Course now I probably won't with the baby. Can't imagine it being comfortable. Not to mention the mess you always have with a kid. They'd ruin the seats in no-time. It'd take a real miracle to get the stains out. Not to mention the price for getting it cleaned professionally—"

The man drones on and the demon finds himself spacing out. While this happens, he sees the small family car in the courtyard and the blacked-out security-like SUV's on the other side. Something's wrong with this image.

It is now that Crowley realizes he's not speaking to the American ambassador. There are **two** couples here tonight, and three babies. Perhaps there **is** something he can do to stop, or at least postpone, Armageddon after all. He snaps his fingers and time stops for him.

He practically sprints back into the hospital, searching for the rooms where the mothers are giving birth. He had actually stopped time just as all three babies are in one of the hallways. The sisters seemed to be arguing about something and then he glances down to see the different colored blankets. He decided to use this to his advantage and changed the blankets with another snap.

Now the Young's baby was in the red, the Dowling's in the blue, and the Antichrist in the white one. Meaning: the two couples have swapped sons and The Adversary is to be "discreetly adopted". Crowley stays nearby once he starts time again. The man had completely forgotten their conversation, or even the fact that he had seen him and the car and he walked back to his wife's room just in time to name who he believes is his newborn son. In the other room, the Ambassador's wife has been convinced into naming their child Warlock.

The following day, just as both babies leave the hospital, Crowley comes back, this time disguised as a woman to adopt the "surplus baby". He is left alone with the child while Sister Gretchen gets the paperwork when he smells something very familiar. Hellfire. **Hastur's Hellfire** to be precise. In an instant, he hears the nuns screaming and panicking for their lives. He's about to curse the demon when he realizes this can work to his advantage. There wasn't a true record of the child anyway, not until they did the paperwork. With this distraction, he could simply run away with the child. And so he does.

He conjures up another basket, straps it securely into the passenger's seat and drives at almost light-speed to an old bookshop in Soho. 

~~~~~

Crowley practically jumps from the car once he parks, he rounds it and grabs the basket. He starts knocking on the door like a madman. From the inside you can hear the fussiest angel of all responding: "We are most definitely closed, you'll have to-"

"Let me in, you poor excuse for a salesman!"

The shuffling of feet is heard on the inside of the building, something even tumbled over and then the door opened just a bit, revealing a confused looking angel.

"Crowley? Usually you call-"

Crowley barged through the door, snapping it closed and locked once his whole body was inside. "Tried to. Phone lines are down. No time anyway. I did something bad, Aziraphale." He held out his free hand and a bottle of wine flew into it like Mjollnir would've done with Thor.

Aziraphale's focus has not yet dropped to the basket and responds to his words rather than his appearance or actions. "Well of course you did, dear boy. You're a demon, I wouldn't expect anything less from you."

"No, I mean bad for **me** , not bad for humanity! If it works out, it'll be **great** for humanity!" He yells, softly putting the basket on the nearest table, then proceeding to open the bottle with his teeth, spitting out the cork to the other end of the room and drinking straight from the bottle.

It is now that Aziraphale's focus goes to the basket. A gurgle is heard from the inside and the angel's eyes double in size, his eyebrows practically get lost in his hairline. "What did you do?"

He doesn't dare touch it, so Crowley gestures and the lid pops open. Another gurgle, a small whine and a huff are heard as the angel approaches. When he looks in, he finds the smallest baby he's ever seen. His automatic facial reaction is to smile but the connotations of Crowley, a demon, having a baby in a basket hit him faster than the Bentley cruising through the streets of London at 90 mph.

"No..." Fear was evident in the principality's voice.

"Yup..." Sighed Crowley.

Aziraphale brought up a hand and covered his mouth with it. "Already?"

The serpent nodded. "Yup."

"And you're meant to deliver him?" The dread in his eyes was unmistakable.

The demon nearly choked on his wine, then made the bottle disappear. "Well, I **was**..."

"Crowley...!" He exclaimed.

"Calm down-"

His volume of voice lowered but the tone remained petrified and panicked. "You expect me to be calm when you've brought the literal spawn of Satan into my home?!"

"I have a plan-"

"Does it result in us getting executed? Because I think that's what will happen! What were you thinking?!" He was pacing now, fidgeting around with his hands.

"Angel-"

"Oh Crowley, of all the stupid things you've done, this has got to be the worst! They'll find out, they'll-"

When Aziraphale turns around, his worrisome rant stops abruptly at the sight of Crowley cradling the Antichrist as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"He's just a baby." Said Crowley. "For now, anyway. No powers whatsoever until he's 11 years old. Then they'll send a Hellhound for him. When he names it, the apocalypse starts. But if he doesn't name it..."

"What exactly are you getting at, Crowley?" He asked, wondering if he should've in the first place.

"If we raise him like a human-"

" **We**?!"

"Just listen!" Exclaimed the demon, he then decided to put down the child for a moment. Having the literal reason for the Earth's eventual demise in your arms doesn't really help anyone to stay calm.

The baby is placed into the basket again and he starts fussing. Crowley gives him his finger again and he quiets down. "Can you sense his evil presence?"

The angel glared at him, as if that were the dumbest question he had ever asked him. Crowley glared back.

"I'm serious. Can you sense it or not?"

Aziraphale sighed and focused on the child in the basket. He gasped. Crowley wasn't joking. "I- I can't. Why-?"

The demon nods. "It's like a cloaking device, he can't be detected by your lot. Since we're from the same original stock, we can't sense him either. It's a flaw I think will work in our favor."

The blond huffs, falling into his loveseat. "Why are you still including me in this, I haven't agreed to anything."

"You have to help me, angel. We have an arrangement." Argues the ginger.

"Our **Arrangement** is one does a blessing or a temptation for both on occasion. This is **much** more than a simple blessing or temptation, this is bringing forth the End Times!"

"No, we're trying to **stop** the End Times!" He roared in frustration. The outburst made the infant start crying. The demon then began shushing him and took him into his arms.

The crying didn't go away as quickly as it had previously, this wail persisted. Crowley sat on the couch, cradling the child close to his chest. One hand held him in place while the other lightly caressed his short golden hair.

Aziraphale watched them both, noting how neither of them were focused on anything else other than each other. The only times the child would open his eyes, he'd look at Crowley, not at the bright light from his desk like other curious children would. The sounds from outside the bookshop didn't seem to phase him either. If he had the developed skill for it, the angel was sure he'd be clutching onto Crowley's neck.

"He sounds hurt." He said simply.

Crowley held him closer, shaking his head. "Can't be, I would've noticed and his screaming would be horrendous."

"Not physically..." Said the principality, forcing his feet to step closer in their direction. "He has a human body, human babies have needs. Not just food, being changed, etc. They also need physical contact... Do you think they gave him any, Downstairs, before they handed him over to you?"

The demon scoffed. "I doubt it. I don't how the whole birthing bit came to be for him. Could've been awful, monstrous, bloody. Or, maybe he just popped into existence like we did but his body needs to grow. Whatever the case was, bet your pretty little white wings that he wasn't shown any love down there. It's Hell, remember?"

"That would explain why he's responding so well to you giving him this attention." Said Aziraphale as he observed them. "Do you know when they last fed him?"

"Just before the fire, you're right, he could be hungry." Crowley stated, gently pulling away the child to look at his little face.

Aziraphale looked exhausted again as he groaned. "Do I even **want** to know about the fire?"

The demon shrugged. "Not my doing, it was Duke Hastur's." He said, taking his glasses off. His serpentine eyes stared into the baby's blue ones. The infant didn't fear him, he stared back, following Crowley's slit pupils wherever they went.

_He's right..._

"Not sure about the hunger bit, but I can sense the fear of being abandoned. Poor thing is touch-starved too."

Aziraphale looked sadly at the child, then looked up at Crowley. "How would you know?" He asked, wondering how a fallen angel would be able to feel that type emotion.

The demon's eyes were quickly covered by his dark glasses and he brought the still fussing child closer to his chest once more. "Takes one to know one, angel... Can you read anything off him?"

The principality was wary. He didn't want to try doing anything to him, much less related to his powers. The last thing he needed was the whole of Hell coming after him, with Satan at the front-lines, no less. But since Crowley was there, he did feel a bit safer. He shouldn't automatically assume Crowley would always save him, but he always came through in the past. He had a very good track-record, in fact. Granted, it'd be a tad bit harder to trick both their head-offices compared to using some demonic miracles to get out of a tough spot with a few Nazis.

Aziraphale got a bit closer to them and waved a hand over the baby's chest. Some holy light seemed to extend from his fingers as he did this. The infant cooed with delight, even gave the angel a tiny smile. Then he grabbed the blond's finger. While the demon was more surprised that holy light did nothing to him, the angel was perplexed for a very different reason. That moment was when it truly hit Aziraphale: the child **loved** Crowley. It was new, it was faint, but this just-about day-old little thing loved the demon who showed him the affection he needed. Crowley was right, he was touch-starved. Even with all the fussing he was still doing, the principality could tell this was the happiest the Antichrist has ever been in his very short life.

Without thinking, Aziraphale pulled his hand away and the baby began to whine louder. Just as Crowley was about to give him his, Aziraphale snapped his fingers and the baby was asleep. Crowley's heart nearly stopped but then he heard the child breathing softly and he visibly relaxed. He sent a glare Aziraphale's way. The angel sighed, not believing what was about to happen, but oh well, here he was.

"If we're going to keep him, you'll have to make sure he's safe. Somewhere our superiors can't find him." He had said it hypothetically, still trying to talk himself out of it.

Now it was Crowley who sighed, as if the weight of the world had been lifted off his shoulders. "Oh thank- someone, I don't know who but thank them whatever, whoever they are, I could just kiss you!" He stood, walking over to the basket to place the boy into. It was the demon's turn to start pacing and rambling.

"Alright, so neither office can sense him, that's great! We need somewhere to raise him. It needs to be neutral, can't be here or my flat because angels and demons would sense another living being in a heartbeat whenever they popped by for an inspection. Bloody bastards don't believe in calling ahead. Since I'm barely at my flat anyway, wherever this safe zone is, I'll be with him most days so you can continue being here and not selling books as your cover-"

"Crowley-"

"I'll have to buy nursery furniture, don't wanna risk someone Down There actually keeping tabs on my miracles. Do you know if Heaven's listening in on your phone calls? Don't worry, I'll get you a mobile, it's safer that way. Do you think he'll be a picky eater? Should I bother with a stroller or just buy one of those vest things you put them into?"

"Crowley-"

"Ugh, the Bentley needs a car-seat for him. Too bad I can't just keep him in the basket. He handled my driving much better than you ever have, angel, I was impressed-"

" **Crowley**!"

The demon spun around and stared at the angel as if he had been there the whole time, totally not rambling. Aziraphale gestured to the couch before sitting on it. "Let's discuss the more major parts before you go off buying all the material necessities, shall we?"

Crowley slumped down onto the furniture, a bit embarrassed. He gave the angel a nod so he would continue.

"You plan on raising the Antichrist as your own?"

The serpent of Eden shrugged. "Well, not **technically** my own. Sooner or later he'd realize we look nothing alike. I mean, he's the spitting image of his real father before he Fell. Anyway, yes. Raise him to be like a normal human being. I need your good influences to balance out my evil ones." He explained.

Aziraphale tried his best to not laugh at that last sentence. "Right, because you seemed **so** evil earlier when it looked like you were mere moments away from growing breast to feed him if it made the poor thing feel better."

"Not my proudest moment as a demon, I'll admit... But doesn't it make sense? We'd be like his godfathers. We raise him to love the humans as we have, he won't want to destroy his home and we can continue being here..."

_Come on angel, I know you like the sound of that._

Aziraphale sighed, rubbing his temples. He was going to go through with it, but he thinks a drink would help him cope with it a bit better. Though, he holds off on that for logic's sake.

Crowley turns to him, sunglasses shed from his face. "We both know you don't really belong Upstairs. To Her, sure, but you aren't like the others. I certainly don't fit the mold Down Below anymore either..."

The principality's expression looked worrisome, like he was rethinking this whole thing yet again. Crowley's heart started racing and something went off in his head.

_Well, I've already embarrassed myself plenty today. Might as well go all the way. Can't say I didn't try then._

The demon slid down to the floor, on his knees, hands together as if in prayer, in front of Aziraphale. "I'm asking you, **begging** you, as my best friend, as my **only** friend, to not abandon me in this. **Please** , angel. We can do this..." He urged. He felt his pupils expanding, he hoped it would have the same effect as a cute and helpless cat. Crowley knew the principality had a soft spot for fuzzy little creatures.

Aziraphale looked as conflicted as he felt. The truth was that even though he didn't like the thought of disobeying The Great Plan, he had grown quite fond of Earth and its humans. Not to mention a certain redheaded demon. And right now, said demon was practically in his lap, begging for his help, because he too loved this place and humans far more than he should've. The angel's expression changed slightly before sighing and summoning a wine bottle like Crowley had done earlier.

"Fine. I'll help you." He said simply.

Crowley lightly held the bottle in place, stopping him from opening it. "You have to be **sure** , angel. You can't leave me alone in this. We might find our own destruction trying to save the humans, if you're serious, you need to promise me you'll see this through no matter what or die trying..." He sounds frightened, but determined. More determined than Aziraphale's ever seen him in their whole existence.

_This is our home, Aziraphale. We can't just let it turn to ash. Please..._

The angel takes a deep breath and gives him a nod before extending his hand. Crowley shook it to seal the deal, letting out a breath he hadn't noticed he was holding in.

With that, the demon let himself fall backwards, as if he fainted on the bookshop floor. He looked relieved. "This is going to work. I **know** it is."

"I hope you're right..."

A long silence filled the room, as if the area itself was also trying to process the deal which had just gone down within these walls. They both seemed nervous, but then again, who wouldn't be in this situation.

Aziraphale's eyes focused on the basket once more. "So, what are you going to call him?" The angel uncorked the bottle and drank from it after asking the question.

Crowley sat up, raising a brow at him. "Hmm?"

Aziraphale took another swig from the bottle before continuing. "The boy. You can't just continue calling him The Antichrist if you want to pass him off as normal, people would think you're an awful parent."

"They'll think that anyway once they see me driving... I don't know, actually. Hadn't thought that far ahead." Said Crowley.

Aziraphale glared at him. "I beg to differ. Did you not hear yourself rambling just a few moments ago?"

The demon glared back, unamused. "I meant with the little things... What **should** we call him?"

"There are plenty of lovely, normal sounding names you could choose from."

Crowley climbed onto the couch and stole the bottle from Aziraphale's hands. "Mention a few for me." He drank about a glass-worth of wine.

"Well, let's see..." He yanked the bottle away from the snake. "There's John. Adam. Peter. Michael. Gabriel-"

"Too common. Too ironic. Too boring. Not going to happen. **Definitely** not going to happen-"

The angel scoffed. "Well, what were **you** going to suggest? Naming him after Da Vinci?"

"No!" Exclaimed the demon, swiping the bottle for himself again. _Bastard...!_

"Well, you also had that other friend a few decades ago. The singer from the band the Bentley refuses to stop playing?"

"Freddie." Crowley smiles sadly before shaking his head. "Nah, don't think so..."

_It'd be a bit strange, especially for the Bentley._

"Well, there's still plenty of good names to choose from. There's Arthur, William, Benedict, um... Oh, Oscar's a lovely name too-"

_Nope!_

The demon raised up a hand, as if telling him to stop. "Hold your horses there, angel. I'm **not** naming my pseudo-child after your ex."

"What on Earth are you talking about now, you old serpent?" Aziraphale groaned.

Crowley squinted at him. "What? You're going to deny having a fling with Oscar Wilde?"

"It was not a **fling** -"

"Really? Then what was it?" Asked the demon, leaning in closer to him.

_You were a naughty little thing while I was asleep, and I have yet to hear about the details from your mouth. Had I rubbed off on you too much by then? Too bad I missed it. Maybe you could've been rubbing up on me- no. No, I'm not that drunk yet and there's an infant in the room. **Not** gonna think about it..._

Aziraphale was blushing like a schoolgirl and it wasn't because of the alcohol. He wished it was, so he nabbed the bottle once more. "None of your concern! We're picking a name for our 'godson', as you've dubbed him, not talking about my love-life!"

"Right. 'Cause we'd need a lot more booze for **that** topic to be spoken of, huh?" Stated the demon with a knowing grin.

" **Quite**..." The blond cleared his throat and changed the subject. "What about Anthony? That's your human alias, humans name their children after themselves all the time. From generation to generation, sometimes."

Crowley seemed to like that idea. "Maybe. Though, if we're going to be technical about it, he'd be Anthony III. Shadwell still thinks he began dealing with my father back in the sixties. Once you reach 'the third' I find that it gets a bit tedious. And too reminiscent of a few centuries ago when people weren't creative enough to name someone something different."

The principality rolled his eyes. "And you think **I'm** the fussy one..."

"You are, but please continue." He insisted with an exaggerated hand gesture.

Aziraphale took a long sip from the bottle, thinking what would sound nice. "...What about Mark Anthony?"

"Like the singer or Cleopatra's husband? I've never met the singer myself but he's got some lungs on him, I'll give him that."

"The latter, I never quite liked the spelling with a 'c' instead of a 'k'. But that's not my point. Neither of us worked or interacted with the politician, so it's neutral in that aspect. It has a nice ring to it and from a human-cover perspective, it makes sense that you gave him your name as his second."

"...Mark Anthony Crowley. Not bad, angel. Not bad at all..." He said, standing and walking over to the basket. The baby slept pleasantly, a shadow of a smile on his lips deepened when Crowley placed a gentle hand on his face.

_I think it'll suit him well..._

~~~~~

The angel and the demon worked out everything. Crowley found a calm little place in Tadfield where they would take turns watching over the boy. The schedule took some getting used to, especially once the two of them realized their head-offices weren't checking in on them as frequently because they were focusing all their attention on who they thought was the Antichrist. Crowley had managed to not be involved in that, telling Beelzebub that he was tired of being the only demon who worked this hard on Earth. 'Give it to Hastur, or Ligur, I have more fun temptations to get to before the end of the world!' He had said once before storming out of there. It could've backfired greatly, he was aware of that, but Beelzebub took the outburst as Crowley finally getting with the program and being more of a demon, less of a human. The Prince of Hell figured it was to get a promotion before the war, they would've never guessed it was to raise the actual Antichrist.

Aziraphale on the other hand, didn't have to do much to be kept out of the loop. Most of the time, they didn't want to tell him anything, so for once, being left out was a good feeling. It took him the longest to get a handle on this parenting business. Realistically, he knew what a child needed, and being an angel, he had more skills than most. But he never took to it as naturally as Crowley did. If he didn't know any better, he would've easily believed that Mark was truly his child and not the son of evil incarnate. Seeing this side of Crowley so often made him come to grips with some feelings he had been repressing for the last few decades. He loved Crowley, he was in love with him. Not only that, but the love he could feel on a regular basis when they were together wasn't just a fondness like he had told himself over the millennia, it was also love. He could accept that, but he would never admit it, not first, anyway.

It was the night of Mark's 6th birthday. The party had gone down earlier in the afternoon and the boy had an amazing time. He was so tuckered out from the event that he was nodding off in the bathtub before being put to bed. The angel and the demon began drinking after they tucked him in. They were on the couch of the living room, talking nonsense and laughing at how ridiculous they were. It was only when Aziraphale accidentally placed his hand on Crowley's thigh in a fit of giggles that it happened. Crowley stared at the hand, then looked at the angel's eyes. Said eyes were focused on the demon's wine-stained lips. Bravery surged through him, and in an instant, he was kissing the angel. Aziraphale barely responded because of the shock, which was enough to sober them up in the blink of an eye as the snake pulled away. He started to apologize and scold himself. However, the angel reaching over and locking lips with him quickly made him realize he did nothing wrong.

They confessed their feelings for each other when they parted. Joyful tears were shed, more kisses were shared. Crowley lead Aziraphale to the master bedroom of the cottage. Kisses turned into touching, touching turned into undressing, and soon enough, they were exploring each other's bodies in ways they had only hoped to do someday. They awoke the following morning believing it had been an alcohol-fueled dream, right up until they noticed they were still naked and wrapped in each other's arms. They quickly realized they didn't want to go back to the way things were, they didn't want to be on opposite sides anymore. They wanted to be a family with Mark, to blend in with humans as much as they could for the rest of eternity.

Drastic measures would have to be made in order for this to work. Crowley picked up the things which Aziraphale deeply cared for at his bookshop, the angel did the same at the demons flat, then they proceeded to destroy both places. Aziraphale flooded Crowley's home with holy-water, blessing every entrance so demons couldn't enter to search for Crowley's remains, and Crowley lit the shop ablaze with hellfire. To their head-offices, it looked like the demon had set up his trap beforehand but it went off after the angel's did. The apartment was flooded at midnight and a cursed bomb went off in the shop half an hour afterwards. They had both let a trail of memos and failed assassination attempts for several months before destroying their homes so it seemed as though they had finally had enough of each other and couldn't stand being thwarted any longer. Heaven was starting to think Aziraphale wasn't as soft as they believed and Hell was considering giving Crowley a promotion before they faked their deaths.

They used Mark's ethereal-occult protection to their advantage. If they were all in the same place, they couldn't be found. This is why head-office, both Above and Below, truly **did** believe they had killed each other. And they did it with time too, had they waited to do it just before the boy's 11th birthday, that would've looked terribly suspicious. So they were able to live out almost completely normal lives, minus the miracles and when Mark finally asked how he was born.

A choice was made at that moment. They could've lied, say they got married and adopted him when he was just a small little thing. But Crowley felt he would see right through the lie somehow, or worse, he'd realize the details once the hellhound came knocking about and his powers would be abused because of his emotions running wild. So they told him the truth, all of it. Who they were, his role to play and how they wanted to stop it. He couldn't believe he was a monster, he didn't want to be. Upon seeing how upset Mark was, Crowley took him into his arms, telling him he wasn't a monster and he promised to make sure he didn't turn into one. Both he and Aziraphale vowed to do everything in their power to ensure they'd still be a family even after Mark's 11th birthday.

They believed they had done enough.

~~~~~

_**Aziraphale's POV:** _

_**-5 Years Later-** _

The lights of their bedroom turned on with a quick snap. "Angel! Wake up!" Yelled Crowley as he sprung off the bed.

Aziraphale woke with a fright to find it was still dark out. The clock on the table read 12:06. Before he can ask anything, Crowley is pulling him out of the bed.

"The hellhound! It showed up! Mark, he- he named it!" Cried the demon.

The angel felt his heart drop. _No..._ "But we taught him not to-"

"I felt it! We need to go after him!" Crowley grabbed him by the collar of his pajamas and dragged him downstairs. He snapped his fingers again and they were both dressed to leave the house.

Aziraphale could barely process everything that was happening. "Where is he?"

"I saw him fly away with that bloody beast in his arms!"

"How can we track him?"

"I know where he's going, come on!" He grabbed Aziraphale by the arm, once again dragging him out of the room they were in. His grip was so strong that his nails were digging into the angel's skin without even realizing it.

_He's blinded by anger and fear, he hasn't realized he's hurting me..._

"How do you know?" He asked with a wince as he wiggled out of the demon's grasps to get into the Bentley. Aziraphale miracle'd away the pain from his arm with a quick snap.

He snapped again but nothing happened. He growled and scolded himself. _Who knows what we'll find there... I should've never given away my sword! Now no bloody weapon materializes for me! You stupid, **stupid** angel!_

The car's engine roared to life once Crowley jumped in and was already moving before he had sat properly in the seat. "The Airbase! All his fucking nightmares are always in that bloody airbase! It must've been a sign, a warning and I was too stupid to see it!"

It was now that Aziraphale could focus on his other half. Crowley's eyes were completely snake-like, no white sclera to be seen, his pupils were as thin as a single hair and they were swimming in tears. His jaw was clenched, he had a death-grip on the Bentley's steering wheel and he was visibly trembling. The angel had never seen him so upset, but it made perfect sense. This was his maternal instinct activated. He needed to protect his baby, while also trying to protect the world from whatever his baby was about to do.

Aziraphale had no idea of what to do to help him. He couldn't think of any words or actions which could get the snake to loosen up his coils and make his fangs hide once more to think properly. No matter how much he tried, there was nothing that would help their current situation. So he prayed.

_Lord... I know you probably don't want to hear anything from me anymore but... I know this was his purpose, always has been. If something happens to Mark, don't let Crowley see. If we survive this, spare him the grief, forgive him, please... I've been the bad angel, do what you please with me but please don't do anything to him, Almighty..._

It was more begging than praying but it was all he wanted to ask for at the moment, their safety, if possible.

Crowley still looked as distressed but Aziraphale felt a bit better himself. Well, not better. Perhaps calm was the better word for it. That was the case, at least, until they sped through the airbase gates and, despite the darkness from the night skies, saw the four horsemen standing across from Mark and the hellhound on the tarmac. The Bentley screeched to a halt and both Crowley and Aziraphale jumped out of the car, their wings manifested as soon as they had the space for it.

"Mark!" Yelled Crowley, pain clear in his voice. "You said you didn't want to do this! You didn't want to be the monster! Don't listen to them, don't listen to the voices! You can stop this!"

Listen to your godfather, Mark, please!

Death stepped forward. "MASTER, GIVE THE WORD AND I SHALL SILENCE THESE TWO FOR GOOD."

Mark held up a hand. "You will do no such thing. Go, you have your orders." His voice was distorted, it sent chills down his adoptive parents' spines.

_Orders...?_

Thunder rumbled and lightning flashed, the four horsemen rode off in smoke as the ground began to shake.

Crowley fell to his knees, feeling like he was being pushed down. "No! No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no!" He yelled frantically.

Aziraphale, meanwhile, felt like he was being pulled up. "What's happening?!" He asked, just as frantic as Crowley. He even started floating a few inches above ground.

"Satan is coming!" He managed to stand again and grabbed Aziraphale to anchor him down. "And it looks like She's coming too!" Crowley pinned Aziraphale to the Bentley and they used the vehicle as a barrier. The demon also used his whole body and wings to protect Aziraphale from anything that could've come their way.

Moments later, once the earth beneath them ceased moving and the dust settled, Crowley opened his wings and the angel and demon looked up to where Mark was. The boy now stood in between his real father, who was currently a red-skinned behemoth with a crown of horns, and The Almighty Herself, who looked like pure white light, shaped like a Roman goddess statue. They spoke in a language neither lesser being could understand. They sounded agitated, upset, done with waiting. The skies went from black to red, the moon's light seemed to drain as The Almighty began to float up, more wind whirled around Her the higher she went. Hell's King pounced up to join her, debris and fire tailing him. Soon enough, they were enclosed in a sphere, battling and screaming at each other.

Crowley was about to run towards Mark but the boy made him stop. Literally. With just one finger held up, he made sure the demon stayed in place.

"Mark, please, stop all of this!" Begged Aziraphale, also finding himself unable to move.

"I'll come back for you later! Watch out for each other!" Ordered the boy before zooming up into the sphere of chaos along with his beast.

They were finally able to move again, and Crowley's first instinct was to open the trunk of the Bentley. There was a lead-pipe, a bat and a crowbar, how he wished to be one of those demons with a medieval mace in case of emergencies. Oh well, there was no way he could concentrate enough to conjure up all the weapons he would've wanted to have at this moment. He grabbed the bat and gave Aziraphale the crowbar.

"What's your plan, Crowley?" Asked the angel, worried as ever.

"We're not leaving him up there! I'm taking him, throwing him in the car and we're getting the fuck off this planet!" Growled Crowley, his wings about to take flight when Aziraphale grabbed onto his arm.

He made sure to turn him around to face him properly. "What about the humans?! Why we did this in the first place?!"

_It wasn't a lie, I know it wasn't!_

"Fuck the bloody humans! My priorities changed six years ago, Aziraphale! I'm not letting those two kill my boy or my angel!" The outburst was angry, frightened but full of love all the same. So much so, that it made the angel's eyes water.

"Crowley-"

A loud boom sounded and threw them off balance again. Portals started opening, both from the skies and from the ground. Thousands of angels and demons flooded the airbase with weapons in hand. Bows and arrows, swords, spears, axes, you name it, you could find it on this field. They fought on the ground and in the skies, nowhere was safe for them. Crowley cursed his weapon and Aziraphale blessed his, in hope that this would give them a chance in battle. They stayed near the Bentley, eventually they had to climb onto the top of it because the unconscious bodies they left in their wake were piling up far too much for their liking.

After a bit, the area where they were seemed to calm down. The angels and demons were almost all in the skies or farther away from the car. This was when the mistake was made. Aziraphale let his guard down for one second, looking at the sphere which still had all three greater beings fighting in it. He didn't see the angel coming straight at him, but Crowley did. Without thinking, he pushed Aziraphale out of the way and took a spear through the heart.

_No!_

Aziraphale knew how great of a crime smiting your own heavenly siblings was, but at the moment, he didn't care what punishment he'd receive. He did it without any hesitation, and the demon which was about to attack him had second thoughts and fled to fight another, less intimidating, angel on the other side of the airbase.

The principality fell to his knees on the roof of the car, grief stricken as he pulled Crowley into his lap. He still breathed.

_There's still time, there has to be!_

He tried healing him, but Crowley removes his hands from the spear. "No use, too late..." He manages to say. Aziraphale refuses to listen and tries to heal him again. This time, when it doesn't work, he breaks down. They're both shedding tears, but Aziraphale is sobbing, physically aching at the fact that he should've seen this coming. He was the soldier, not Crowley.

_Why him, Lord? It should've been me! Mark- Lord-, someone stop this madness, **please**!_

He ignored everything going on around him, focusing on his demon once again. "My dear." Said Aziraphale with tears in his eyes as he kissed Crowley's cheek. "My love." He placed a kiss on his forehead. "My everything..." He laid a final one on his lips. This was the one the demon reacted to more.

Crowley then gripped Aziraphale's arm as much as he could, trying not to gasp as he pulled himself up, hard to do when a golden spear sticking out of your chest. "Go..."

The angel shook his head defiantly, his eyes still swimming. "I'm not leaving you! Perish the thought."

Slitted yellow eyes met irritated blue ones, practically pleading him to run away while he still could. "I'll find you. I always do..." He insisted with a raspy voice.

Aziraphale felt a small hand on his shoulder. When he turned, he saw Mark, who only looked about half as sad as he was. Though, he didn't seem distraught. The angel wanted to scream at him.

_The man who raised and loved you since you came to this world is dying and you only look mildly upset, what is **wrong** with you? What did They do to you up there?!_

"He's right, Aziraphale. We have to go." He urged, trying to pull him by his shoulders.

Aziraphale aggressively moved away from Mark. "No!" He wailed.

The demon glanced up at him, more tears in his eyes now. "Angel..."

"No! I won't abandon you, Crowley! I promised you I'd see this through with you... Even if it meant destruction..."

Another hoard of angels and demons were headed their way, but Aziraphale wasn't budging. Not on his life. He knew Mark would be fine if he chose to be, and at this point, Aziraphale wasn't sure on what side their godson was on. So, his whole physical focus was on Crowley.

_Why aren't you bringing him back?! Why aren't you trying to heal him?! I know you love him, I **feel** it!_

Aziraphale is too upset to bother asking or yelling at him, he just holds Crowley as tight as he can without touching the weapon which impaled him. He tells him repeatedly, fervently, 'I love you, I'm sorry.'The demon took his last breath wrapped in his angel's arms. Suddenly, the spear is dislodged from Crowley from behind and forced through Aziraphale's heart.

The angel screamed in pain and looked up to see his attacker. "M-Mark...? Why-?"

As Mark opened his mouth to speak, Satan popped up from behind the boy and grabbed him by the back of his shirt.

" _ **It's ineffable, Aziraphale**_." He said, in a voice not his own. The principality would've gasped if he wasn't feeling his life force draining from him. He needed all his energy to keep his eyes on the scene before him. When Mark turned to face his father, he was decapitated on the spot. His final tears dropped as he focused on the love of his life and the boy they raised together, their corpses laid next to his as he faded away.

_Please_... The last thing he remembered was a white light engulfing him.

~~~~~

Aziraphale wakes up surrounded by stars. He felt strange, he hadn't felt like this in millennia. He didn't know what to do, and before he could think of anything to do, a very familiar presence approached him. Pure light, warmth and love. It was God.

_Almighty_... His instinct was to bow before Her but he didn't have a body to do so. He was just a floating soul with little control over his essence, his two blue eyes were the only characteristic which resembled his human body.

" ** _Aziraphale, you finally wake_**." She says, sounding pleased.

He looked around, then focused on Her once more. "Lord... This does not look like Heaven... Is this my place of judgment?"

The greater being's light shifted, as She was shaking Her head. " ** _No, my child. You were judged 11 years ago when you made a plan with the demon Crowley to raise the Antichrist as a human and as your own_**."

Aziraphale's heart would've sank, if he had one anymore, that is. "I see..."

" _ **Don't look so sad, Guardian of the Eastern Gate. Your son and I had a chat before the war started**_." Her tone sounded cheerful, which only made the former principality more confused.

_My son?.... Mark? But he never-_

" ** _He begged me to spare you. Both of you. By then, Crowley had already fallen. He begged for forgiveness, for mercy._** "

A sigh of some sort left him, he sounded upset with himself. _And I actually thought he didn't care... I died angry with him..._

" ** _Worry not, my child. He knows you forgive him_**." In a far away corner illuminated by Her light, sleeps a small grey colored essence.

Aziraphale could feel him, even without seeing any identifiable characteristics. "Mark!... I don't understand, Lord. Why would you spare us if we went against The Great Plan?"

" ** _You didn't go against my Ineffable Plan, Aziraphale. This is how it was meant to be_**."

"But-"

" ** _I know you have more questions, my child, but don't you want to join your son and husband?_** "

_Husband?_

Another spotlight shines just a few feet away from Mark. Crowley's soul is a distinct shade of yellow, just like his eyes were. Emphasis on 'were', because the two eyes which were staring back at him didn't resemble snake eyes at all. They were a deep and beautiful shade of green. Aziraphale feels like crying.

_They're both here. They're both alright... Thank you so much, Almighty...! Thank you so much!_

" _ **You're welcome, my dear. Go. Be with them. We have much work to do once you're done reuniting...**_ "

Before he could ask anything, She disappeared. Rather than being upset about the abrupt goodbye, Aziraphale floated over as fast as he could to Mark. He tried waking him to no avail. He feels himself frown, thinking something must be wrong. Just as he was going to call upon the Almighty again, the yellow soul slithered its way over to him. It was evident Crowley had more experience when it came to a loose fitting corporation, so not having one didn't seem to bother him.

"It'll be a while before he wakes up. He really wore himself out down there..." Said the familiar voice nonchalantly. Once the baby-blue colored entity that was now Aziraphale finally figured out how to swirl around to hug something, he did.

They phased through each other a bit but after a while of concentrating, they were solid enough to hold one another. Aziraphale started crying. Or whatever the equivalent would be in this scenario. He stares up at Crowley, so relieved that he got to see him again after all.

"How did this happen? Why weren't we destroyed?" He asked, cupping his face as if he were the most precious thing in all existence.

Crowley held him tighter, as a quick and reassuring hug. "Mark and The Almighty reached an agreement. He wanted us spared. That's why he started Armageddon in the first place. Figured if he could come out on top, we'd be safe. During the scuffle up in the sky, Mark stopped time to have a heart-to-heart with The Almighty. She told him the war needed to be won, and he made an offer. He promised he would take out Satan and essentially win the war for Heaven with just one blow if it meant the three of us could spend eternity together."

"But, I saw him get killed by his father, how-?"

The former demon smiled with his eyes. He found it amusing that now, after all these years, it was Aziraphale asking so many questions. "I saw the scene too Aziraphale, but once I was here. He did get torn in two by The Devil. But what actually happened was: his body turned into holy-water and grace. There was no reversing my fate and he took you out as a mercy because no demon or angel would've made it that quick, they would've had you agonizing for hours because you were a traitor. He sacrificed himself to kill his birth father, all for us..." Said Crowley as he kneeled and placed what looked like a hand on Mark's soul. Crowley's essence radiated pride, as did Aziraphale's.

When the former angel reached over as well, Mark's soul started to change color. Aziraphale was frightened, as if he hurt him. Crowley quickly kept him from retracting himself.

"It's alright, he needs this. Don't move your hand." He told him, putting his own on Mark's soul. The child's essence began glowing again.

Aziraphale stared at him. "You knew... You knew this would happen!"

Crowley nodded.

"How? You never left my side!"

"You were right all those years ago. About the bond that me and Mark share. But once he came into his power, he was able to get in my head whenever he wanted, without even trying. Before we got attacked, he told me he had a plan. That everything would be fine. I just needed to trust him. And I did. I just didn't have enough time to tell you. Why do you think I didn't tell you how much I loved you with my dying breath?" Explained the yellow soul.

If Aziraphale could blush in this form, he'd be as red as a strawberry. Both from affection and embarrassment.

_Am I truly that foolish?_

"You're not foolish, angel."

Aziraphale raised what would've been a brow. "Do I have no private thoughts anymore? I expect mind-reading from The Almighty, but now you as well?"

Crowley grinned with his eyes, caressing his beloved's face. "I'm your husband now. She bonded us too, that's why I can hear you. You can hear me as well. Try it."

Aziraphale did, focusing on the floating entity in front of him. Again, if he had a body, all the blood in it would have been rushing to his cheeks.

_Crowley!_

"Stop thinking like that, you fresh old serpent!" He scolded, unable to keep himself from laughing.

Crowley laughed along with him. "Had to make sure you really could hear it. It's funny, your eyes have no skull to pop out of, and yet, that's exactly what they looked like they were about to do."

At that moment, Mark's body stopped glowing and changing colors, settling into a bright shade of green. The boy stirred but didn't wake.

"I'll assume you're bonded now too." Said Crowley happily.

Aziraphale's tone was doubtful at best. "Do you think so?"

"You think not? Look at him. He's literally the color you'd get after mixing ours together."

"Would he want that?" He asked, now looking at him.

"You raised him too, angel. Of course he would want that."

Blue eyes saddened as he looked at Mark. "But I never accepted him fully, not how you did. And that love that he felt for you? I never felt towards me."

"He wouldn't have begged for your soul if he didn't love you." Said Crowley, shifting closer to him.

He grabbed the former demon's hand. "Is it possible he only spared me so you could be happy?"

"Angel..." Crowley grabbed his face as much as he could, forcing him to lock eyes.

"It was wrong of me to not accept him. After all, I had finally managed to accept you. How I felt about you-"

Crowley smirked. "And it took you six bloody millennia to do it! Raising and loving the Antichrist in just 11 years? It's not exactly surprising you didn't take to him very fast... Trust me when I tell you, he loves you." He insisted.

_If that's true, why did I never sense it?_

"I don't know, angel..." He sighed, pressing what would've been a kiss (by human body standards) onto his forehead.

Time passed. How much? Neither was sure. This place seemed to work like Heaven and Hell. What felt like a few moments here could've meant years had passed on Earth. Of course, Heaven, Hell and Earth didn't exist anymore, so maybe that wasn't the best comparison. The point is, time passed. Aziraphale and Crowley talked, talked about things they had never spoken of. Perhaps it was because now, not only did they not have to worry about being caught, there was nowhere else for them to go.

The stars which surrounded them had started to feel like home. Crowley told him stories of how he created his, back before the first rebellion happened. How he grew frustrated every time he didn't get one into the position he wanted, or when he'd get scolded by Gabriel and Raphael (the lead star-makers) for not doing something correctly. Sometimes, Crowley would drift off, both physically and mentally wondering if he could go find his own stars once Mark woke up.

The Almighty came back one day, incredibly eager. She told them Mark would awaken soon, and they would start their new task after that. Aziraphale took this moment to ask questions, ones he would've been afraid to ask if they were still on Earth and the end hadn't happened.

"Were any of the humans spared, or did you decide to start over with nothing?"

" _ **The rapture occurred as soon as Mark sent out the four horsemen. All those who rose up are currently sleeping, just like he is, until their new home is built.**_ "

"What will their new home be?"

" _ **Another Eden, here in the stars. You three will build it.**_ "

"Us?"

" _ **Yes, my child. Who better than you, who loved them as I did, to make them a new home? After all, you and Asteraoth essentially renounced Heaven and Hell when you faked your deaths and went into hiding.**_ "

_Asteraoth? Why does that sound so familiar? I know I've-_ He felt his husband shift uncomfortably.

Aziraphale looked at Crowley, astonished, and the former demon seemed to be embarrassed. "You mean to tell me, that you named your Nanny Ashtoreth character that you never got to use after your angel-self? **Not** the Middle-Eastern goddess in 'another act of defiance toward The Almighty' like you told me?"

Crowley grumbled something Aziraphale couldn't understand. He laughed lightly, trying to hug his favorite serpent, who quickly obliged.

"You missed being an angel more than you let on, didn't you?" He asked him softly.

Crowley nodded into him.

Aziraphale gently pressed a hand on his face. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"What was the point? There **was** no point, it's not like I believed She would ever take me back!"

_Your eyes tell me a different story, darling. You're not as unforgivable as you thought._

" _ **Indeed, you are not. Asteraoth, you did not Fall for asking questions. You Fell for this. I knew no one else could show the Antichrist love how you would. You were able to love as a demon because you didn't rebel, you were just at the wrong place, at the wrong time, and with the wrong people. That unjustified rejection you felt for millennia? That is what pushed you to take care of Mark, to not abandon him, even when you weren't sure what side he was on...**_ "

"...Did you ever hear me? When I would try speaking to you at night?"

" ** _Always, my child. But if I had answered, sent you a sign, it would've thrown you off-course. I needed you to resent me, to want to prove you were a better parent than I was to you. And it worked..._** "

"Was it ever about the humans?" Asked Aziraphale as he looked down at him.

Crowley nodded.

" _ **It was at first. He realized he could rub this in my face a short time after he took Mark home. Do you remember that, Asteraoth?**_ "

He nodded again. "He started crying because he was sleeping in his crib, alone in his room. I brought him over to my bed, he slept peacefully on my chest. I fell in love with that boy, and I would be damned all over again if I wasn't going to be there for every little thing he needed from me..."

_Emphasis on 'every little thing'. You'd call every ten minutes when it was my turn to watch him._

"Sorry about that, angel. I should've trusted you more. I mean, you were the only other being in existence who I trusted with my life. Should've trusted you with my pseudo child."

"Can't say 'pseudo' anymore." Rang a familiar voice from behind them. Mark had finally woken up.

The former angel and demon spun around at light speed, just in time to be tackled by the shorter green entity who latched onto them. This is when Aziraphale felt it.

_You were right, darling. He does love me_... The blue soul felt like crying again.

"I always did. I just didn't know if you would want to kill me to be accepted in Heaven. I'm sorry I hid it from you..."

Aziraphale held him even tighter. "You did it to protect yourself. It's alright, my dear. You saved us, you have nothing to apologize for."

_We're together, that's what matters the most..._

~~~~~

**_Crowley's POV:_ **

With that, The Almighty called for them and they began to build their new home. It was better than the original garden, it was bigger, the colors were brighter, the temperature was always perfect and all the human souls were free to roam the whole thing with nothing forbidden.

Aziraphale, Crowley and Mark acted like guardians. If something minor occurred, the humans would go to them before going to The Almighty. They sometimes grew confused when it came to the former demon, because they weren't sure how to address him. The Almighty would refer to him as 'Asteraoth', while his husband called him 'Crowley'. To make their afterlives a bit easier, he simply told them to call him 'Anthony'.

"Hey, Dad? Why don't you just use your angel name?" Asked Mark one day when he was helping his father make some new constellations.

Crowley shrugged before moving along the stardust into the shape he wanted. "I haven't felt like Asteraoth in a very long time. Now's the closest I've felt to it, but it's not quite the same. I don't know if I deserve that name anymore, but She gave it to me. I'm no longer a demon, so I can see why She doesn't call me 'Crowley'."

_I wouldn't ask her to call me by my demon name anyway. She forgave me, made me an angel again, I'm trying not to ask so much this time around._

"So then, how come Papa still uses it?" Mark scattered some stardust of his own. It didn't exactly settle into place so Crowley guided his hand gently to teach him how to do it.

_It's easy, you'll get the hang of it. Come on, do as I do._

"It's the one I've used for the longest time, the one he associates with me the most. They named me 'Crawley' Down There because I came out of the sulfur lake as a snake. When I finally shifted into human form, I was so weak, all I could do was crawl. It took some time before I could actually walk. It was a taunt, more than anything. I was used to it but I didn't like it. So I changed it a bit to feel better about myself... I like how he says it, I don't want him to stop using it." He explained, slowly moving away so Mark could continue doing it himself. The boy smiled when it worked and the stardust did as he wanted.

_There you go, now you're getting it!_

"And 'Anthony'?"

"That was da Vinci's doing. He told me I'd need a first name to blend in better with humans."

Mark whirled around, shocked. "Leonardo da Vinci knew you were a demon?!"

"Yup."

The boy seemed to think that was the coolest thing he had ever heard. "Wicked! So why 'Anthony'?"

"He rattled off some common names, I liked how 'Antonio' sounded both in Italian and English so I went with that. Not sure when I added the 'J' into the mix." He told him, arranging the bigger stars in a lovely diamond pattern.

Mark raised a brow, mirroring his father's pattern but making it slightly different. "Why did you never pick anything for the 'J'?"

"I don't know, it sounds fine as-is." Answered the green-eyed soul. _So I never put an effort into it._

"You could've just used 'Jay' y'know." Said Mark in a very matter-of-fact tone which sounded far too much like Aziraphale.

Crowley glanced at his son. "I did."

"No, the name. J-A-Y, Jay." Explained Mark, literally spelling it out in the stardust in front of them.

At that moment, Crowley wanted to face-palm himself. He laughed. "Thank God you have your Papa's brains." He said, hugging Mark and placing a kiss just above his eyes.

"Yeah, but I got your heart." Replied the younger soul, hugging him back.

_Oh come on, why'd you do that for?_

"Mark Anthony Crowley, we came out here to make some constellations, not so you could make me cry. I don't appreciate this!"

Mark laughed. "We're alone, Dad. You don't need to keep up the tough guy act." He said, hugging him tighter. Just then, he felt something shift.

_What the-, you little bastards-_

"That's bullshit because I just felt Aziraphale somewhere around here. Angel! Come on out, the jig is up!"

Aziraphale popped out from behind a pile of unused stardust in a far corner of the skies. "You see, my dear? I told you he'd notice." He told Mark as he got closer.

The boy seemed to frown. "No fair, **I** didn't even notice when you showed up!"

"Kid, I've been sensing him for thousands of years, I've got quite the advantage on this compared to you." _And I always will. He's my angel after all._

"I told him, but he insisted you wouldn't notice me if he distracted you enough." Said Aziraphale, close enough to hold them both.

Crowley chuckled. "I'd have to be **much** more distracted to not notice you, angel. You're my better half. And the brains when it comes to this marriage."

"So I heard." Replies the blue entity with a bit of sass.

Crowley smiled, nuzzling into him. "Don't get an ego from it, yeah?"

"Too late." Aziraphale quickly pecked a kiss onto him.

"Daaaaaad, don't start getting all lovey-dovey now! We have stars to finish!" Complained the child.

The former demon laughed and it came off as a growl when Crowley let go of his husband and picked up Mark. He hugged him and snarled, which made the child laugh because it tickled him.

"Come on, then. Let's show your Papa what you learned to do today." He said cheerfully.

The smile on the boy's face was as plain as day. "Which one? A pattern or an animal?"

Crowley turned to his husband. "What do you think, angel? What do you want to see?"

"Whatever you like best, my dear."

And so, the boy began painting the sky with all kinds of colorful stars. Aziraphale praises him all the while. Crowley smiled.

_Thank you for letting me have them..._

**_You're welcome, my child._**


End file.
